The Chance of a Lifetime?
by Branson Williams
Summary: A Harry Potter fan opens his mail one day to find a strange letter from someone named Jo. The letter requests his help and sends him off on an adventure he never expected. Please review! Tell me what can be improved, what you like, or don't like.
1. An Unexpected Piece of Mail

**DISCLAIMER****I do not own Harry Potter. Nor am I affiliated with J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers, Scholastic, or any other publishing company that handles the Harry Potter franchise. I am making no money what-so-ever from this story. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is pure coincidence and is unintended, as is any resemblance or reference to any real locations past or present.**

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**The Chance of a Lifetime?**

By Branson Williams

Chapter One: An Unexpected Piece of Mail

Jon had been a long time fan of the Harry Potter books. As such, he was eagerly anticipating the arrival of the seventh, and final, book in the series. He had been re-reading the first six books over the past few months. He stayed up late every night reading the stories. He was checking the mail a week before the official release date of the book, when he noticed a strange letter in his otherwise empty mail box. It was addressed to him and had come from Scotland. The writing was loopy and seemed to glow.

Jon Norvack

223 Lecteur Road

Los Angeles CA, 37495

Jon did not know anyone in Scotland so, who would have sent him a letter? He opened the envelope and unfolded the letter it was written in the same loopy writing as the address on the envelope.

Dear Mr. Norvack,

I require your help as soon as you can arrive. I have included a plane ticket that will bring you to a small airport here in Edinburgh. Please hurry!

Yours Truly,

Jo

Jon read the letter quickly, not believing what he was seeing. Edinburgh? Jo? His mind was on overload. This letter had to be a hoax. The Jo who wrote it could not be _the_ Jo could it? There was only one way to find out was to get on that plane. He rushed back inside to pack so he could leave within the hour.

The plane ride was long, but uneventful. When he landed at the airport in Edinburgh, a car and driver were waiting for him. The driver took his bag and opened the car door for him. Jon climbed inside, not expecting to see someone else already seated inside the car.

"Mr. Norvack," the figure said, "you are here at the request of my employer, who will explain all of this too you when we arrive." Jon sat back and relaxed. At least he would have answers soon.


	2. Is This a Joke?

**DISCLAIMER****I do not own Harry Potter. Nor am I affiliated with J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers, Scholastic, or any other publishing company that handles the Harry Potter franchise. I am making no money what-so-ever from this story. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead is pure coincidence and is unintended, as is any resemblance or reference to any real locations past or present.**

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Chapter Two: Is This a Joke?

The car pulled up to a house and stopped. Jon looked through the window and let out a low whistle. It was impressive. A rather large house with a beautiful garden, stained glass windows, and numerous decorative features loomed before him. It almost looked like a small castle actually. The other man in the car cleared his throat softly, bringing Jon's attention back down to earth. The man was now holding a piece of paper. He handed this paper to Jon, who noticed that the paper was filled with writing and legal jargon almost at once.

What was this? It looked like some sort of contract. At the top, in bold large letters were the words: Non-disclosure Agreement. Jon looked up at the man, a curious expression on his face.

"She will only speak with you if you sign the paper Mr. Norvack," the man said, offering Jon a pen.

Jon read the paper quickly. It covered the basic things. Basically it said he legally could not tell any one anything that was said, or risk being sued and arrested. Jon shrugged and signed the paper. The man looked at the signature and nodded. Then the car door opened and Jon was escorted by another man to the house and into a medium sized room with an enormous desk, a state-of-the-art computer, and several comfortable looking arm chairs. Jon sat in one of the chairs to wait. He did not wait long. The door opened and Jon stood quickly. His jaw dropped at the sight of the person now framed in the doorway.

"Hello Mr. Norvack. I expect you are wondering why I sent you a letter requesting your help?"

Jon opened his mouth to reply but no sound came out. He promptly shut his mouth again and swallowed nervously. He was still in disbelief. He was standing in Jo Rowling's office! A million thoughts raced through his mind all at once. _Why was he here? Why did Jo personally send him a letter? How could he possibly help her? Was this some kind of prank?_ Jon could only nod; his mouth open is awe, his eyes wide, staring at the famous author.

"I…. I…. wha…." Jon could only stammer. Jo smiled politely and motioned for Jon to take a seat before closing the door and moving around to the chair behind the desk. Finally Jon managed to spit out a very weak sounding "Hi…" Jo chuckled softly and folded her hands on top of her desk. Jon took several deep breaths, trying to calm down so he could actually speak. "Is this some kind of joke? Am I on a hidden camera show or something?"

Jo shook her head. "No Mr. Norvack. This is not a joke, nor is it some television show. You are here at my request." Jon blinked. He was beginning to believe her. "I asked you to come here, and provided you with a plane ticket and my personal driver to request your help with a small matter."

"Which is?" Jon asked. He doubted he could be of any help to Jo. He was just a fan who lived in California. What made him qualified to help her? He had no experience with being a personal assistant, or an editor, or writing. So, that was not the reason she had wanted him here.

Jo noticed the perplexed look on Jon's face. "Here. Maybe this will help," she said handing him a small stack of papers. "It seems to me that I need to add a character to the story and I was wondering if I could use you as a basis for that character."

Jon was even more confused now than he had been before. Why would she ask him about a new character? What right did he have to advise her on such matters? She was the author, the imaginative force behind Harry's entire world. "That would be….. fine with me I suppose, but why ask me to be a character in your book? Isn't the last book supposed to be published and released soon?"

Jo acted as if Jon had not spoken and sat writing on a pad of paper. Jon sat quietly, feeling honored to be able to see this famous author write. It hardly even mattered what she was writing as far as Jon was concerned. It could be part of a story, or it could even be a grocery list. He noticed that every once in a while, Jo would glance at him briefly, and then she would go back to writing on her pad of paper, occasionally flipping to the next page. Jon was tempted to lean forward to try to see what Jo was writing, but he decided that it would be a stupid thing to do. After about ten minutes, and an entire pad of paper, Jo sat back in her chair and regarded Jon silently, as if she were scrutinizing him. It made Jon shift uncomfortably in his chair. "My husband will show you to your room Jon," she said politely after a moment.

A man Jon had not noticed before motioned to the door. Jon stood. "Thank you Mrs. Rowling," he said. Jo nodded in reply, and the man escorted Jon to a room where his belongings had already been arranged. Jon yawned sleepily and thanked the man, who, Jon now realized, must have been Jo's husband Niel.

In her office, Jo sat quietly, wondering if she had chosen the right person for the job. She had been looking for someone for this assignment for quite some time and in all of her inquiries, Jon's name was at the top of the list as the one person who could handle the transition, and the journey he was about to take. She just hoped they had been right about him. Well, she would find out soon enough.


	3. Set it Right!

**DISCLAIMER****I do not own Harry Potter. Nor am I affiliated with J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers, Scholastic, Bloomsbury, Raincoast, or any other publishing company that handles the Harry Potter franchise. I am making no money what-so-ever from this story. I am using Mrs. Rowling purely as a character in this story. Any resemblance to other real persons, living or dead is pure coincidence and is unintended, as is any resemblance or reference to any real locations past or present.**

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Chapter Three: Set it Right!

Jon slept comfortably that night, more comfortably than he had ever slept before. The bed was large and soft, the mattress being filled with goose down. The sheets were light and cool to the touch. The pillow was over stuffed and enveloped Jon's head like a cocoon. He hardly moved at all during the night, when normally he would toss and turn throughout the night to find a comfortable position to sleep in.

Hours later, Jon thought he heard someone calling his name. He also had a feeling of movement, as if someone were gently shaking him. Jon snorted in his sleep, thinking that he was just dreaming a person was calling his name. The voice became more insistent. It was a female voice, one he was unable to recognize. Jon grumbled and slowly opened his eyes.

"I'm up. I'm up," he said groggily.

He blinked a few time in the bright light, which temporarily blinded him. He looked around and did not remember where he was. He had a memory of flying to Edinburgh, Scotland and meeting Jo Rowling. He remembered being show to a room and falling asleep on the most comfortable bed he had ever seen. What he did not recognize however, was where he was now. It certainly was not the bed room he had slept in. For one thing, the room was moving! That explained why he had had a feeling of being shaken awake. This room was much smaller, and he was sitting on a seat next to a window outside which, a vast picturesque landscape was flying by.

"Are you alright Jon?" said the female voice from his left.

Jon nodded and turned to look at the speaker, and blinked in surprise. He recognized her! Or at least he thought he did. She certainly looked familiar. The trouble was he could not remember where he might have seen her before, or where he might know her from. He wanted to ask her who she was and how she knew him. He opened his mouth to ask just those questions when images flashed before his eyes. Images of himself with three other people, all of whom looked familiar to him. The images multiplied and became clearer each time the passed before his eyes. There were feelings of long forgotten memories associated with the images. Were these suppressed memories? No. These were clear memories. He saw them and somehow knew that he had always had these memories and had always had access to them.

He knew who the girl was. He looked around the compartment, and he knew he was on a train in a private compartment with three people he had just met. Yet, he knew each of them, the two boys and the girl. He knew who they were, he knew who he was. He also knew where he was, and where they were going. Suddenly, a voice entered his mind.

"_You must protect your new friends. Their world is being changed beyond my control. I do not know how, or why. I only know that you, Jon, are the only one who can set their world right again."_

Oddly, the thought came in the sound of a familiar voice that was not his own. It was a female voice, one much older than the girl sitting before him now. Jo? Was Jo speaking in his mind? After a moment the voice in his head faded and Jon visibly relaxed. He felt comfortable here, as if he belonged here. The voice had told him to protect his new friends, to set their world right again. What was wrong with it? What was being changed? Why was it being changed? Jon heard the voice again.

"_This world is being destroyed from within. It is being re-written. Only you can save it. Not even I am capable of saving this world that I created. I can help you along they way, but I cannot openly interfere. If I openly try to set thing right, the destruction will happen more swiftly than before. That is why I asked for your help."_

Jon listened to the voice. So he was here to save this fantasy world, this world that existed only on paper and in Jo's mind? How had he entered this world in the first place? It felt so real to him, as if it were his only reality, and that world in which he had met Jo was just the fantasy.

Jon's companions were still staring at him with concern on their faces. "I'm fine you guys. Don't worry so much Hermione."


	4. A Train & A Sorting

**DISCLAIMER** **I do not own Harry Potter. Nor am I affiliated with J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers, Scholastic, or any other publishing company that handles the Harry Potter franchise. I am making no money what-so-ever from this story. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead is pure coincidence and is unintended, as is any resemblance or reference to any real locations past or present.**

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Chapter Four: A Train & A Sorting

Hermione still looked worried but seemed to calm down a little. "I need get back to helping a boy named Neville find his toad…." she said as she stood and headed for the door of the compartment.

"See you later then…" Jon said politely as Hermione left.

Well, that answered one of Jon's questions. If Hermione was helping Neville find his toad Trevor, then this must be their first year at Hogwarts. That would make them eleven years old. Was Jon eleven now too? He regarded his reflection in the glass of the window next to him. He still looked the same. He still had the same piercing icy blue eyes that some said allowed him to peer directly into a person's soul, they also made even the most resolute individual shudder as if a freezing wind had suddenly picked up, he had the same light brown hair, a good complexion, and an athletic build. He was exactly the same as he remembered, but something about his reflection still bothered him. It took him a moment to figure out what exactly was bothering him about his reflection. He _was_ eleven! Still, something felt wrong to him. He looked down at his hands and stared at them intently. His eyes moved past his fingers, over the backs of his hands, past his wrists and up his forearms. Nothing. He turned his hands over so that he could see his palms. Still nothing. He saw nothing wrong, no marks, no wounds, nothing new aside from being a little younger. Oh well, he decided to figure it out later. For now, all he wanted to do was get to know Harry and Ron. Not that he really needed to get to know them. He already knew them of course. He had read all six of Jo's current books concerning the adventures of these three friends.

"_The trio is now a quartet. Use the friendship well,"_ Jo's voice said in his mind.

So, from the information Jo had given him, it seemed like the story was being re-written from the inside. That must mean there was something out of place that was causing what ever changes were occurring. Would that something be a person? Was it a creature? Or maybe it was a ghost? It could even be something else. Jon would just have to wait and see. Until he knew for sue what was causing the problem and what sort of things were changing, he would have to keep his eyes open. Of course, his own presence her would undoubtedly change things, so he would have to learn how to tell the difference between a change caused by him, and a change caused by who ever, or whatever else was around that had no reason for being in the story.

Jon sat silently on the seat across from Harry and Ron, who were working their way through the large pile of sweets. Then right on cue, Malfoy and his two cronies appeared in the doorway. Jon rolled his eyes slightly. This was going to get a little tiresome. He knew how the story went. He knew what would happen and when. He supposed he would just have to get used to it. Malfoy asked if Harry was who people on the train said he was, drawing the affirmative response from Harry. The he asked about the sweets, causing Ron and Harry to jump up. To avoid any suspicion on his part, Jon jumped up too, seeming to take Harry and Ron's side of the fight. Now it was three-on-three instead of the two-on-three that it had originally been in the book, something that was unavoidable.

Even though he knew Goyle would reach for the sweets and be bitten by Scabbers (who Jon knew was really Peter Pettigrew), Jon felt himself reaching into his pocket for something. His hand wrapped itself around a piece of wood and he withdrew his hand from his pocket, a wand clutched in its grasp. He had no idea what had made him do that. It was something he would not have done knowing he was here to return the story to its original state, so pulling out a wand and attacking the three bullies would be a rather stupid thing for him to do. Goyle reached for the sweets and screamed. Withdrawing his hand from the pile, they could see Scabbers attached to his knuckle.

Goyle screamed and shook his hand violently freeing Scabbers from his hand and the three bullies ran from the compartment just as Hermione was coming back down the corridor to tell them to get changed because they were nearly at Hogwarts. Harry, Ron, and Jon quickly changed into their school robes as the train slowed to a halt at Hogsmeade Station. They disembarked and headed in the direction of Hagrid's booming voice. They cambered into a boat, followed by Hermione. Neville, instead of being in the boat with Harry, Ron, and Hermione got into a boat with a boy Jon didn't recognize. Then with a lurch the boats took of toward the castle, stopping at the underground harbor. They climbed carefully out of the boats and headed toward the large wooden doors where they met Professor McGonagall. McGonagall led them to the waiting area before the sorting. Hermione was talking rather quickly as expected, Harry was flattening his hair. Everything seemed alright. Nothing seemed to have been changed so far. Well, nothing besides his own presence here among these fictional characters.

McGonagall came to collect them shortly and placed the stool and Sorting Hat before them. Then she unrolled a piece of parchment and started calling out the names of the students. Hannah Abbot became a Hufflepuff student, as did Susan Bones and Justin Finch-Fletchly. Millicent Bulstrode went to Slytherin, as did Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle. So far everything had happened the way it should have and Jon was beginning to wonder what exactly he was doing in this world. Nothing had been changed as far as he could tell. Had Jo made a mistake? Was he here for no reason? He waited patiently as he watched Hermione become a Gryffindor. Little did he know what was going to happen next. If he had, maybe he wouldn't have yelled so loudly.

"Granger, Jonathan!" McGonagall said looking expectantly at Jon.

"Bloody Hell!" Jon shouted as his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he toppled over backward. He was Hermione's twin brother! He lay there in front of all the other students and staff, muttering to himself.

"It can't be….. No….. That's not my name…. My name isn't Granger…." He heard several screams that seemed rather distant. Then several faces appeared before his. McGonagall's, Harry's, Ron's, and Hermione's.

"Don't be such a prat! You're not being funny Jon. Nobody is going to believe you've gone crazy and don't know who you are. Get up and stop being stupid!" Hermione hissed at him.

Jon saw images float before his eyes again. Images of himself growing up with Hermione and her parents. He saw birthday parties, Christmases, vacations and he saw two letters from Hogwarts. One for Hermione Jane Granger, and one for Jonathan Alexander Granger. So he was Hermione's twin brother. That seemed odd to him. Had he inherited her obsession with books? He searched his memory and found several memories of the two of them sharing books and he had a feeling of excitement when a memory of a bookstore floated to the forefront of his mind. Evidently, he was just as much of a bookworm as Hermione was. Possibly even more so. He would just have to wait and see. After being badgered by Hermione, and asked repeatedly if he was alright by McGonagall, Jon nodded and slowly made his way to his feet. He walked to the stool and jammed the Sorting Hat on his head, Hermione glaring at him and threatening to write home to mum and dad about his idiotic behavior even though he was her older brother.

The hat spoke quietly in his ear. "A twin eh? Much like your sister. A bookworm. A thirst to protect those around you. But which house do you belong in? Definitely not in Slytherin. Nor would Hufflepuff be a good choice for a mind like yours. So it's either Ravenclaw, or Gryffindor for you. Which would be better? You have a great mind and are a studious person, so Ravenclaw would be a good bet, however, I sense a longing to be with your sister and your two new friends. If that is truly where you want to be….. you belong in GRYFFINDOR!" The hat shouted the last word to the entire school and as Jon pulled the hat from his head, he could see Hermione jumping up and down with a happy expression on her face. Jon made his way off the steps and took a seat next to Hermione, who congratulated him enthusiastically.

"Way to go Jon! I knew we'd be in the same house! I just knew it! We're inseparable after all."

Jon smiled warmly. "Thanks sis! I hoped we'd be in the same house. It just wouldn't feel right being in a different house than you. You are the smarter one, and I wouldn't want to compete against you for the House Cup." Hermione blushed slightly at his words of praise and admiration. They were soon joined by Harry and Ron, who sat on Jon's other side with large grins on their faces.

The Weasley twins leaned across the table and smiled at Jon. "That crazy bit you did when they called your name was great!" George said.

"Hilarious! I think I broke a rib laughing." Fred agreed.

Jon smiled at the twins and shrugged. He hadn't meant it to be funny. He had been so shocked that his last name had been changed to Granger that he'd nearly fainted. At least if everyone thought it had been a prank, he wouldn't be _the crazy kid_. Hermione scowled at the twins and gave Jon a disapproving look as if she were still trying to decide whether she was going to write home or not.


End file.
